Overview & Reviews

"Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes-Benz?" That's the opening line of "Mercedes-Benz," a song most famously recorded by singer Janis Joplin in the early 1970s. The tune gently poked fun at materialism and our desire for the finer things in life. It's fitting that the renowned German marque figures prominently in the lyric. Mercedes-Benz has long been known for crafting vehicles that emphasize luxury and refinement. For many, its vehicles are sleek symbols of status, success and good taste.

In January of 1886, Karl Benz unveiled the world's first automobile, a three-wheeled vehicle dubbed the Benz Patent Motor Car. A few months later, Gottlieb Daimler and his chief engineer Wilhelm Maybach rolled out a four-wheeled vehicle powered by his Daimler engine. The first Mercedes was crafted in 1901, shortly after Daimler's death. Built by Maybach, the car was commissioned by Emil Jellinek, one of Daimler's primary distributors, and was ultimately named after Jellinek's daughter, Mercedes.

In 1926, the companies founded by Daimler and Benz merged to form Daimler-Benz AG, and the Mercedes-Benz brand was born. The company's insignia was a three-pointed star wreathed in a laurel; the star was dreamed up by Daimler years earlier, and its three points signified the fact that his engines were used in vehicles that traveled land, air and sea.

Right from the start, the Mercedes-Benz name was synonymous with automotive excellence. One of the automaker's earliest vehicles, the 1931 Mercedes-Benz 170, distinguished itself as the world's first production car to offer a technology that was nothing short of extraordinary for the day: four-wheel independent suspension. The '30s and '40s saw Mercedes establishing itself as the brand of choice for car buyers seeking the ultimate in luxury, thanks to coveted cruisers like the 380 and 540K.

The 1950s witnessed the introduction of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL "Gullwing," a sports car that has been described as being the world's first supercar. With its dramatic styling and race-bred technology, the 300 SL reigns today as a classic coveted by collectors worldwide. The decade also saw Daimler-Benz making strides in the area of safety technology. The company's Mercedes-Benz 220 sedans were the first vehicles to incorporate its patented "crumple zone" body design, created to absorb impact in the event of a crash.

In 1963, the company cemented its reputation as the home of automotive luxury with the launch of the Mercedes-Benz 600. The elegant, luxurious sedan was also available as a limousine and featured an ahead-of-its-time air suspension system and a V8 engine that boasted 300 horsepower. The decade also saw the launch of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3. This full-size sedan went from zero to 60 in under seven seconds, distinguishing itself as the quickest luxury car is its day.

The 1970s saw the birth of the brand's storied S-Class line of vehicles, opulent sedans and coupes that coddled passengers with powerful engines and a long list of luxury features. The decade also saw Mercedes continuing on the cutting edge of safety technology, by being the first to offer antilock brakes in its vehicles.

Daimler-Benz's safety advancements continued in the 1980s. Its cars were the first to offer airbags and traction control. The manufacturer also raised the bar in terms of ride comfort and handling when it introduced multilink rear suspension. The technology debuted on the compact Mercedes-Benz 190 E, and it remains a vital component of the company's chassis engineering to this day.

Mercedes-Benz vehicles got an extra dose of power and performance in the 1990s, thanks to the manufacturer's partnership with AMG, a performance and tuning shop that was eventually purchased by the company to help produce ultra-high-performance versions of some of its vehicles. The first AMG model offered in the U.S. was the sporty C36 AMG in 1995; since then, Mercedes has gone on to offer an AMG-tuned version of almost all of its vehicles.

The company's current lineup is the most comprehensive in its history. With a variety of sedans, coupes, SUVs and roadsters filling Mercedes showrooms, it seems like the only thing missing is a pickup truck. Surely, the fact that Janis Joplin's song holds as much relevance today as it did four decades ago is a strong indicator that the brand's premier status is still very much intact.

User Reviews:

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  Ill keep itfor 20 years! - 2002 Mercedes-Benz G-Class
  By Roxydad - December 9 - 1:43 pm

  After about 2,500 miles, the G500 is perfect: comfortable, extreemly capeable off road, built like a tank and civilized enough that I have to fight my wife for the keys. On road performance is adequate in all respects with acceleration good, braking very good and handling, surprisingly, also very good. Moreover, it has remarkably good NVH isolation. The COMAND system is complicated, but I like having access to a GPS.

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  Cool Week in Florida with a GLA 250 - 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class
  By Dirk Durstein - December 7 - 3:16 pm

  Rented a GLA 250 4-matic to drive from West Palm Beach to St. Augustine and back for a wedding. The front seats were exceptionally comfortable and supportive, and the rear cargo area was plenty for two and our gear. Not much room in the rear for passengers - which was irrelevant to us. Performance - acceleration, handling, braking - was exhilarating. Ride was firm but not harsh while cruising. Fuel economy was excellent. Used sport mode around town and economy on the highway, with sport steering setting. Cruises easily at 100 mph with little road noise and full control. The engine stop/start feature was an aggravation, with hesitation, so I disabled it. The transmission was smoother in sport mode than in economy or comfort. There is a custom feature available too. Audio was good but not great, and no equalizer controls. I would opt for the Harmon-Kardon upgrade for $750 (can be ordered separately from various packages). Burnished aluminum on dash was ugly and reflected too much sun. Opt for wood. Electronics were a steep learning curve indeed; but this was a rental with insufficient time to study the manual. Not intuitive. I agree the central screen looks like a cheap add-on. Visibility is limited due to the small windows all around. I normally drive a Ford Focus hatch with manual tranny, so the outstanding performance and solid quality build was impressive. Missed the clutch; but there are paddle shifters. Did not take it offroad; but doubt it would make it over the dune on the Outer Banks. More of a slick-handling sporty AWD hatch with tremendous performance for the price. Cannot even imagine driving the AMG version.

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  Cat Food Cans - 2001 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
  By flyspech - December 6 - 9:49 pm

  Its May 2011 and my 01 E320 has just 36k orig mi. on it; looks new inside and out. I anticipated owning this car until I couldnt buy tires to fit it. In May of 06, its 5th bday (the warrantee now as good as the paper it was printed on), we lost the right catalytic converter, in 6/08 the air conditioning just stopped, 4/09 the left side cat rattled us back to the shop, but today is special; today starts a week long diagnostic attempting to discover why neither infrared key will operate the ignition. Our 01 E320 is a great car to wash and keep in the garage. It especially looks good in the driveway. If my wife felt the same as me; itd be pressed into lots of cat food cans.

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  Style & Class - 2005 Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class
  By Had them All - December 2 - 10:56 pm

  If you want to handling of BMW, the ride of Lexus, the reliabiltiy and resale of MB, then this is your car. The nice thing too,is that there are not to many of them on the road. Its everything you should expect in a luxury car and this time you get it for a price thats not crazy. Forget the bring Accuras, forget the boxy 5 series BMW, this is perfect for the sophisticated buyer with no kids.

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  Good times dont last. - 2003 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By azally - December 2 - 3:46 pm

  This was my first car. Im in high school and even though Im young I love and research cars nonstop. I have had my c230 coupe since 9/06 and it was my dream car until about a month ago. My sunroof cable broke and that was the only part that the extended warranty didnt cover. Less than a week later, my engine started shaking and the check engine came on. Took it in and there is a flaw with Mercedes and something in the cylinders can get stuck open and dont bet on your insurance/warranty place to cover anything. Cost for new cylinder: $5000. Too much maintainance, in shop too much, need a more reliable car so Im selling. Overall, I love the car to death but not worth the time in the shop and hassle.

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  Most Unreliable Care I Ever Owned - 2002 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By Jim - December 1 - 8:36 pm

  Bought the car with 12,000 miles. Always wanted to stall at stop signs. Took 2 years for them to find out what was wrong. Replaced fuel pumps on good will since warranty expired. New pumps whined and they would not replace them again. Coil spring broke, power steering pump went bad. Crankshaft position sensor bad. Rust bucket - car started rusting after two years. Front end noise. Traded it in cause I was tired of all the problems. Rode great but very expensive to own. Poor mechanical quality. Worst car I ever owned.

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  Is it a benz or a Hyundai??? - 2009 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class
  By Benzlover - November 28 - 4:23 am

  Very disappointting!!! for those of you guys who are seeking the good ole fashion quality of the benz a word of advise SHY AWAY. The 4x4 of the year can not sustain a small bump from the side walk curve without busting its air- suspension module. Interestingly enough, when taking the vehicle to the local benz dealership the Service manager told me, " hey this car is just like a kia and a hyundai, what do you expect, its build the same" I was floored by the lack of cooperation and needless to say the poor craftsmanship. If I wanted a kia i would buy one, well, maybe i should have. It is a shame that a 70K+ 4X4 of the year is basically a kia with a mercedes star on it.

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  Mercedes really messed up! - 2002 Mercedes-Benz S-Class
  By berncurio21 - November 26 - 8:13 am

  All throughout my life, my family has only owned MB cars. I grew up around them so I know about their great ride, fantastic style and reliability. My first car was a C230 and I got an SLK after that. I traded in for a 2002 S500 sports package and it was the biggest mistake. four days after I drove it out the lot, the air suspension dropped so the car was sitting on its tires and had to be towed and the repair alone cost $1400. After that repair, the brakes had to be replaced for another $900, two weeks after, my HID headlamps went out which costs another 500 bucks. In addition, the alternator started to act up at 70k miles and costs $900 to replace. The biggest disappointment!

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  Happy So Far - 2007 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By Gary In Mpls - November 20 - 5:26 am

  I bought my C230 Sport off lease, with 19,700 miles on it. So far, I love this car! I have never owned a car that handles as well as the C230 does. There is almost none of the "leaning" effect during sharp higher speed turns. I am not sure if this is due to the suspension or the sport tires, but it is great fun to drive. Having driven the car through a Minnesota winter, I would definitely advise buying snow tires. I didnt and some of my snow day commutes were more exciting than I would have wanted. Other reviewers have indicated that snow tires will make difference. I plan to purchase snow tires next year.

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  My Batmobile - 2002 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
  By Bummer - November 16 - 10:50 am

  It is a well engineered vehicle. The 2002 E320 has all of the improvements since 1996 without the glitches from 2003 and newer models. The brakes and throttle are soft and the suspension are made for a comfort ride. The body frame is solid and has no significant vibration until 100 mph. No major problems with my E320 so far. Unless you consider adding windshield fluid is a major problem.